California poppies were in full bloom on a spring afteroon in Mount Diablo State Park on Saturday, April 16, 2011.

California poppies were in full bloom on a spring afteroon in Mount Diablo State Park on Saturday, April 16, 2011.

Photo: Ali Thanawalla, SFGate

Bay Area wildflowers should peak in coming weeks

1 / 2

Back to Gallery

It was like a magician waved a magic wand last week. After a tepid spring, wildflowers fired to life across the foothills of much of the Bay Area and Sierra Nevada.

The coming weekend will likely bring total ignition.

About an inch of rain is expected this week for most parts of the Bay Area, and 2 to 2.5 inches for the Sierra foothills. Then temperatures could hit the 70s by Sunday. High soil moisture followed by a bright, warm sun is the magic formula for wildflowers.

The Sunol Wildflower Festival is Saturday at Sunol Regional Wilderness. Point Reyes National Seashore also has a lot of firepower, with dozens of species at the Chimney Rock headlands and rafts of wild iris at Limantour, and other good spots. At Rancho del Oso - the coastal Highway 1 access to Big Basin Redwoods State Park - the new Nature and History Center will open Saturday.

In the Sierra foothills, the most famous destination for wildflowers, Daffodil Hill in Volcano (Amador County), ignited into bright yellow last week.

Yet some spots are duds. At one of the most famous wildflower destinations in the western United States, the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve near Lancaster (Los Angeles County) has been foiled by winter drought and the result this spring is muted blooms.

Another hope is the next few weeks could bring a rebirth to 87,000-acre Henry W. Coe State Park east of Morgan Hill and Gilroy, one of the best destinations for wildflowers a year ago. Gilroy, like many areas south of San Jose, has received little rain this winter - only 8.75 inches since July 1, including 0.02 inches in December and 0.83 in February. The best guess is that this April's blooms won't have the star power of last year's.

Here are the best wildflower destinations by region and parks. The East Bay hills and Point Reyes are tops by far:

Point Reyes National Seashore

Point Reyes has 18 percent of the flowering plant species found in California, believed by rangers to be more than anywhere else in the state. At Chimney Rock at peak, 90 blooms were counted in one-mile stretch.

Others spots

Rancho del Oso: McCrary Loop, 50 species of wildflowers within two miles of trailhead; located on Highway 1, western outpost for Big Basin Redwoods and coastal access for the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail; grand opening Saturday for renovated Nature and History Center, wildflower blooms peak at the end of April. (831) 427-2288, ranchodeloso.org.

Latest from the SFGATE homepage:

Click below for the top news from around the Bay Area and beyond. Sign up for our newsletters to be the first to learn about breaking news and more. Go to 'Sign In' and 'Manage Profile' at the top of the page.